Currently I am reading Ghostly Awakening, by E M Leya (a Salt Lake City, Utah resident), which is about assistant medical examiner, Lance who is involved in a near fatal car accident and receives a severe head injury. Finally able to return to work, he suddenly starts seeing ghosts, and worries he is losing his mind. However, many of the ghosts are those he does autopsies on, and they are able to provide information to help catch their murderers. This is a huge help to homicide detective, Angus Young (his parents love AC/DC) whose mother has had the same ability, as Lance, since childhood. Lance does see other ghosts, ones that have not made the decision to move on, as yet, and one of these is local tv chef, Celeste Dupont. Lance and his brother loved her show, and one of their favorite recipes to try out was “Lemonade Chicken”.
The description was enticing and knew I wanted to try it out myself. Unfortunately, the recipe is not in the book, so off to Google I searched and found way too many recipes. Many were simplified, only a few ingredients; some were complicated with long lists of ingredients. So, I attempted to find the origin of the lemonade chicken recipe itself.
Supposedly, it was created in America’s southern states, but this is speculation and has not been confirmed. I even asked our lovely Southern Belle, Melissa Gill, of the Monticello City Office, and she has never heard of such a “southern dish”.
Lemonade Chicken is simply an Americanized version of Lemon Chicken which has its roots in Chinese Cantonese, or Mediterranean cuisines, such as Italian and Greek. Lemon juice is the main focal point of the marinade while garlic, soy sauce and a variety of herbs are flavorful additions, depending on the cuisine.
Personally, I have made Greek Chicken which has a simple marinade of lemon juice, olive oil, garlic and oregano, rosemary, basil, thyme and marjoram. A most yummy dish when served over slices of tomato, and garnished with black olives and Feta cheese. As to the Chinese style lemon chicken, while I have not made it myself, I order it often at Chinese restaurants.
The recommended side dish is a baked potato topped with butter. Any melted butter, oozing off the potato and touching the chicken, mixes well with the taste of the marinade, and the combination of butter and lemon juice is recognizable in Mediterranean cuisines.
Anyway, I decided to go with the simplest of recipes that appeared the most in my Google search; a three-ingredient marinade with cooking options for either boneless or bone-in chicken.
Lemonade Chicken
Ingredients:
2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, or bone-in chicken thighs, skin and excess fat removed
6 oz. frozen lemonade concentrate, thawed
½ cup soy sauce (regular or low sodium)
1 tsp. garlic powder
Preparation:
In a small bowl, whisk together lemonade concentrate, soy sauce and garlic powder. Place chicken in a gallon sized, sealable, plastic bag; pour marinade over top. Work the marinade around the chicken pieces, and then gently press out air while sealing the bag. Place bag in refrigerator, laid out flat, and let sit for 24 hours.
The chicken can be cooked by several methods: grilling, baking, pan frying or crock pot.
Grilling
Remove chicken from bag and discard marinade. Heat outdoor grill to medium-high heat, and remember to coat grill with olive oil, or non-stick cooking spray first. Grill chicken on each side, 5 minutes per side for small, thin chicken breasts or up to 10-12 minutes per side for larger, thick chicken breasts. The chicken is done when it reaches an internal temperature of 165F. The grill lines and golden-brown coloring of the chicken will be a lovely presentation.
Baking
Preheat the oven to 425F. Place chicken and marinade in a large baking dish; cover with foil and bake for 15 minutes if boneless; for bone-in, cook 30 minutes. Remove foil, spoon sauce over the chicken, and bake for 10-15 more minutes, or until chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165F. If you want your chicken to have some darker coloration place under the broiler for 2-3 minutes. Spoon sauce over the chicken before serving.
Ready for Oven
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| Done Baking |
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| 2 Minutes Under Broiler |
Pan Frying
Preheat large skillet, on medium-high heat. Place chicken and marinade into skillet, if boneless cook chicken 4-5 minutes per side if thin; if thick 9-10 minutes; if bone-in 20-25 minutes per side. Internal temperature should be 165F. Spoon sauce over chicken before serving.
Crock Pot
In a 4-quart crock pot, on low heat, add in chicken and marinade, cover and cook 4-6 hours depending on whether boneless or bone-in, and internal temperature of 165F is reached.
Notes:
Make sure to own a heavy-duty pair of kitchen scissors aka poultry shears. I have two all metal that I purchased in the 1980s, and they are still working well. I have tried several styles of the “more modern” plastic handled shears, and they lasted about three months before the handles snapped.
The shears come in handy when working with skin-on, bone-in chicken pieces. For this recipe, remove the skin and as much fat as possible, and shears make this task easier to accomplish. Why remove? The skin and fat do not add any extra flavor, and will make the sauce a slimy, oily mess.
When working with an acidic marinade, many recipes have varying times that the chicken should be left in the refrigerator. Personally, I have found that the marinade helps to break down the fibers, especially if using chicken or pork, and allow the flavors to infuse the poultry or meat all the way through, not just the top layer. This is especially important if using a bone-in product. The breaking up of fibers also allows for a quicker cooking time.
With this Lemonade Chicken recipe, I used 2 pounds of boneless, skinless chicken breast which I pan fried. I also used 2 pounds of bone-in chicken thighs which were oven baked. First, I wanted to see the results of both methods. Secondly, since the recommended side is baked potatoes, the potatoes would bake in the same oven as the chicken thighs, and be ready at the same time for dining. The results were definitely on the high side of the delicious scale. Both cuts of chicken were moist, tender and flavorful, and the baked potatoes were a perfect accompaniment.
Mary Cokenour
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